Career Summary

Biography

C. A. Hooker, FAHA, PhD (Physics), PhD (Philosophy), is Professor of Philosophy, University of Newcastle. He is Director of the Complex Adaptive Systems Research Group, researching foundations of self-organisation, bio-cognitive organisation - both organismic and scientific evolution-development, and sustainable development, and author/editor of 20+ books and 100+ papers across these areas plus foundations of physics. He is Director of Assessing sustainability dimensions and impacts, The Cooperative Research Centre for Coal in Sustainable Development, aiming to re-focus sustainable development around resiliency, and houses and supervises Sustainability Options for Australia's Future for the Joint Academies' Committee on Sustainability, Australian National Academies Forum. His articles have appeared in the Encyclopaedia of Philosophy, Proceedings of the British Academy and in many of the leading research journals. He teaches these interdisciplinary ideas to engineers, psychologists and business students as well as to philosophy students.

Research ExpertiseOn-going research comprises 6 distinct streams, all closely interrelated through their employment of a core of complex adaptive system [CAS] models based on non-linear dynamical system [NLDS] theory. These streams are all active, and interactive, with some priority ordering, but ultimately the degree of their activation varies opportunistically, according as circumstances permit. They are presented in logical order, by decreasing generality of systems focus. (S1) General systems metaphysics. The overarching aim here is to clarify the general mathematical and ontological foundations of all NLDS, especially CAS. Active associate investigator is Dr. John Collier, University of Durban, SA and ex-postdoctoral fellow at CAS Research Group [CASRG]. Two investigations are on-going. (S1.1) Reduction and emergence in NLDS. Collier and Hooker are completing a book providing the first scientifically rigorous theory of reduction and emergence in NLDS. All 9 chapters have been drafted. For 2004 Hooker was privileged to publish a major (40pp.) lead article in The British Journal of the Philosophy of Science, the premier European journal in the field, on asymptotics, reduction and emergence. Collier has continued re-working the mathematical foundations (ch.s 2,3) while Hooker has been developing the analysis of multi-level functional capacities in NLDS (ch. 7). (S1.2) Philosophy of complex systems, international editorship. Hooker has been invited by the international editorial board of the Handbook of Philosophy of Science to edit the volume 'Complexity, Chaos and Non-linearity'. He has invited Collier to join him in this prestigious task and an exchange of contracts for a 2007 volume (likely 2008 in practice) has been completed. In addition, another investigation, Foundations of information in NLDS, by Scott Muller successfully concluded with the granting of his PhD thesis in 2004 to international, inter-disciplinary praise. A book based on the thesis is now in process with Springer. (S2) Organisation of bio-cognitive agents. The overarching aim is to understand the general organisation of biological individuals, especially the sources of their adaptiveness, in particular their cognitive adaptiveness. Active UN investigator is Prof. C.A. Hooker, active associate investigators are Prof. M. Bickhard, Henry Luce professor of Psychology and Cognitive Robotics, Lehigh University, USA (ex-visiting fellow CASRG), Dr. Wayne Christensen, University of Durban, SA (and ex-postdoctoral fellow Konrad Lorenz Institut, Vienna and at CASRG), and Prof. A. Moreno, University of the Basques, Spain (ex-visiting fellow CASRG). The initial investigations by CASRG of biological organisation led to the fundamental organisational constraint called autonomy and to a cognitive methodology called self-directed anticipative learning [SDAL]. The SDAL methodology can facilitate the learning of solutions to problems for which even the problem itself let alone the solution method is initially not clear. This is the basic situation for all fundamental bio-cognitive problems. An invited special issue of the international journal Synthese on these ideas is being prepared under Bickhard’s guest editorship and a jointly authored book on the nature of autonomous systems has been given a first outline draft and is being considered by Bickhard and Moreno. (S3) Bio-cognitive organisation and scientific learning. The overarching aim is to investigate basic learning processes in science using bio-cognitive organisation models. Active UN investigators are Prof. C.A. Hooker, Dr. Robert Farrell, postdoctoral research assistant, Dr. Yin Gao, active associate investigators are Dr. Wayne Christensen (see S2 above) and Dr. William Herfel (U. W. Sydney). Three investigations are current. (S3.1) SDAL and scientific learning. Research by Farrell and Hooker (initiated in 2002/3 by Christensen and Hooker) has focused on the detailed examination of a prominent period in the history of sci

This review article supplies a primer on the complex problems encountered in contemporary philosophical inquiry into cognition (knowledge processes). Issues covered include the im... [more]

This review article supplies a primer on the complex problems encountered in contemporary philosophical inquiry into cognition (knowledge processes). Issues covered include the image of scientific inquiry and the epistemologial challenges to existing methodology; the role of values; and the role of ecological and evolutionary perspectives in the study of knowledge. -J.R.Gold

The conserver society is not just a collection of technologies directed at specific solutions, it is a style and a quality of life embedded in the hearts and minds of its practiti... [more]

The conserver society is not just a collection of technologies directed at specific solutions, it is a style and a quality of life embedded in the hearts and minds of its practitioners and the common culture which they share. The authors look in detail at various conflict-resolving institutions. -T.O'Riordan

The collisional, cold plasma, dispersion relation adequately describes the propagation of electromagnetic waves along the magnetic field in a laboratory plasma. The collision freq... [more]

The collisional, cold plasma, dispersion relation adequately describes the propagation of electromagnetic waves along the magnetic field in a laboratory plasma. The collision frequency is estimated and its linear dependence on electron density is demonstrated by a new method.

A preliminary experiment has been conducted on the refraction of microwaves which are incident at an arbitrary angle on a plane, parallel-sided slab of magnetized plasma. The main... [more]

A preliminary experiment has been conducted on the refraction of microwaves which are incident at an arbitrary angle on a plane, parallel-sided slab of magnetized plasma. The main features of the experimental results are adequately described when Appleton's equations, for propagation at an angle to the magnetic field, are applied to a simple plasma model.

The distribution of plasma density in a cylindrical metal vessel has been measured by the method of modulated dipole microwave interferometry. The resulting density profiles are p... [more]

The distribution of plasma density in a cylindrical metal vessel has been measured by the method of modulated dipole microwave interferometry. The resulting density profiles are presented and supported by framing camera photographs and measurements based on the Stark broadening of spectral lines.

Use of silica sand as a proppant has grown dramatically over the last decade with the rise in production of unconventional resources. Massive volumes of sand are transported to a ... [more]

Use of silica sand as a proppant has grown dramatically over the last decade with the rise in production of unconventional resources. Massive volumes of sand are transported to a wellsite and pneumatically conveyed into frac sanders. After formation fracture, sand is moved from the sanders across conveyers into the blender where it's mixed with fluid for transport downhole. During these operations, a significant amount of silica dust enters the air and onsite personnel are exposed. The dangers of inhaling dust and fine particles have been known for hundreds of years, yet many workers today are still not adequately protected. Silicosis, the most widespread industrial disease, results from exposure to crystalline silica and kills hundreds of workers every year and detrimentally affects the lives of untold more. Historically, many cases of silicosis have been associated with sand blasting, mining, and construction. There is now potential for connections to the hydraulic fracturing industry. Symptoms of silicosis can take 10-15 years to materialize, but once it develops the disease progresses incurably. According to a recent U.S. National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) study, many frac sites exposure levels exceed, sometimes by a factor of 10, the NIOSH Recommended Exposure Limit (REL) to crystalline silica. The rapid expansion of the hydraulic fracturing industry has in some places outpaced necessary regulations and equipment for worker safety, especially dust control. A dust collection system has been developed to target sand filling operations where sand particles are likely to be released into the air. With a system in place that aims to contribute to the U.S Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) permissible exposure levels (PELs), the threat of silicosis is significantly reduced from the hydraulic fracture process and unconventional development is made safer for everyone involved. This paper will discuss the dust collection equipment, its deployment and integration with existing equipment, as well as other activities to reduce worker exposure. Copyright 2013, SPE/IADC Drilling Conference and Exhibition.